Prism Rulebook
Prism: Supers is a scaling dice (1d4-2d6) target number system that uses eight attributes. The name comes from a similar origin as Hexagon: Basic Supers, except it refers to octahedrons, specifically the hexagonal prism. The system is designed around the way powers work in the'' World of Heroes'' setting, though it could be ported to other power systems with minimal effort. Dice roll 1d(=Die Rating / dR) as detailed in the Power Grades section below. A +1 (Advantage), +2 (Double Advantage), -1 (Disadvantage), or -2 (Double Disadvantage) may be applied in beneficial or negative circumstances at the GM's discretion. Mundane Actions Actions that are difficult for Mundanes, but fairly easy for Parahumans to complete. * 1-2: FAIL (Negative result) * 3: HALF-SUCCESS (Positive + Negative result) * 4+: SUCCESS (Positive result) Superhuman Actions The majority of all rolls you will be doing. * 1-3: FAIL * 4-5: HALF-SUCCESS * 6+: SUCCESS Heroic Actions Actions that are challenging even for Parahumans. * 1-4: FAIL * 5-8: HALF-SUCCESS * 9+: SUCCESS Lesser Die You can re-roll your die if it is impossible to succeed at a given task (d4, d6), if you roll the highest number on the die. Then, add both of your results together. If the number is greater or equal to the DC, you succeed. Otherwise, you fail. Character Creation A standard Adult Parahuman gets 20 points to put into Attributes called CHARACTER POINTS. Max. is 10, Min. is -1. Every odd number is a half-step (Ex. 5 = C+/1d8). -1 is an INSTANT FAILURE at any task associated with that Attribute. Attributes * Brawn: Strength and Health * Agility: Physical reflexes and Speed * Fitness: Stamina and Health * Smarts: Knowledge and Memory * Perception: Awareness * Willpower: Mental Fortitude * Leadership: Inspire, Give Speeches (Groups) * Influence: Charm, Persuade, Intimidate (1-on-1 encounters only) Derived Attributes * Health: (=BRA + FIT) * Stamina: (=FIT) Combat Stats * Parry: (=1+AGI/2 r↓); Your base Defense Value * Dodge: (=AGI); Your Dodge Value * Fighting: (=BRA); Your base Melee Attack Value * Accuracy: (=AGI); Your base Ranged Attack Value Manoeuvres The following manoeuvres can be initiated before Initiative is rolled or when you are taking your action. If you pick one manoeuvre, you cannot choose another in the same turn. * Attack: Roll vs. Opponent's Parry to deal damage * Dodge: Roll vs. Opponent's Attack to avoid taking damage. * Block: Transfer any Health damage (not AU) to Stamina (-1 to total). * Tank: Take damage normally. Gain Advantage on your next Initiative roll. Combat explained more in-depth [https://pastebin.com/N1tnXVXH here]. Strain (Stamina Damage) Strain is non-lethal damage that recovers in around an hour. You cannot be killed from Strain, though any damage that surpasses -4 ST may seep into your Health Pool. Negative modifiers do not stack. * 1/4: Minor Pain. * 2/4: Pain. * 3/4: Intense Pain. (-1 to all rolls next round) * 4/4: Tired. (-1 to all rolls next round) * -1: Fatigued. (-1 to all rolls until rest) * -2: Winded. (-2 to all rolls until rest) * -3: Exhausted. (-3 to all rolls until rest) * -4: Unconscious. Roll vs. Temporary Injury (Concussion, Sprain, Broken bone, etc.) Wounds (Health Damage) As you start taking health damage, the toll it takes on your body becomes more apparent as your ability to fight worsens and you (eventually) suffer injuries. Wounds heal after One Week per point of damage taken. * 1/4: Bloodied. (Stunned. Bleeding.) * 2/4: Severely wounded. (Bleeding x2) * 3/4: Crippled. (Suffer an Injury: 30% Permanent, 70% Temporary) * 4/4: Mortal wound. (Death) * 5/4: Instant death. Static Attributes * Aura (15): Acts like Shields preventing you from taking direct damage (can still take Strain). Can remove AU in chargen to gain +1 TP or improve it at the cost of 1 TP. * Spirit (3): You can gain the following benefits from using one Spirit Point: ** Gain Advantage (+2 modifier) ** Re-roll a failed check ** Go beyond your current power cap (+1 PAM) ** Use new temporary sub-powers (A Rating) ** Regain 1/2 your Stamina, Health or Aura (Must be >0) * Temporary bonuses last until the end of the scene and can be stacked. Spirit is gained from doing either Heroic (Hero), Villainous (Villain) or Badass (Vigilante) actions. Good roleplaying will reward you with a Spirit Shard. You can combine six Spirit Shards into one Spirit Point. * Image: How well known you are. Positively, you are a celebrity revered by the public. Negatively, you are an enemy in the eyes of the people (and probably the law). The closer you are to zero, the less likely you are to be recognised in public. * Wealth: Can be used to purchase Gadgets and other kinds of Equipment. Skills You get three skills: +3/+2/+1, the number representing the Modifier you add to the appropriate Attribute/Statistic check. Skills must be specialised so they cannot cover a wide variety of ideas. For example: You cannot have "Fighting", but you can have "Brawling", "Swordplay", "Grappling", etc. It costs 1 CP to add a new skill and 2 points to upgrade it. The maximum modifier you can have on top of any attribute is +5, counting Super Attributes, Skills and Misc. modifiers. There are no exceptions. A War of Words (Optional) Like how physical combat can be played out for drama, social combat can be as well. This Social Combat is also known as A War of Words. It plays out very similarly to a normal combat situation, though it is more focused on 1-on-1 encounters. Other participants are free to engage, taking sides wherever they wish, though the main battle takes place between the two original parties. Setting The Stakes If two Player Characters or a Player Character and NPC are going to be engaging in a War of Words, both must agree to the "stakes" – that being "What happens if Player A wins" vs "What happens if Player B wins". Both parties must agree to the stakes, or else the battle cannot commence. This Contract must be seen to the end, even if it isn't something that will permanently change your characters opinion, for the time being he or she will co-operate with the winner. Example: "If I, the hero Gryphon win, you will admit that your actions were wrong and submit yourself to me so I can take you to justice!" vs. "Ah, but if I, the villain Black Swordsman win, you will admit to yourself that not everyone can be saved. Some people are just too far gone. Sparking an existential crisis!" Agreed. Stats * Debate: (=INF); Your Social Attack Value. Deals Doubt (Social Damage) * Belief: (=WILL+10); Your Social Health Value * Composure: (=1+1/2WILL r↓); Your Social Defense Value Manoeuvres * Sway: Positive {Debate} +Trust * Instigate: Negative {Debate} -Trust * Refute: {Block} incoming Doubt taken = Difference (Min. 1). Uses WILL. * Fob: {Dodge} the question WILL * Discredit: {Heal} Doubt WILL * Contest: {Counter-Attack} ½ Damage back if successful. Receive ½ damage r↑ Turn Order * Instigator → Defendant * Defendant → Instigator * UNTIL END Interrupting Any character present can Interrupt one of the parties, allowing them to deal damage to the other side in exchange for their ally's turn. Trust and Motivations Trust is a sliding scale from -5 to +5. Most characters start at +0 Trust, unless you have Super Leadership, where they start at +1. Using Sway will give you a +1 on Doubt dealt, while Instigate will give you a '-1'. The opposite is true with negative trust. Motivations are basically the people or things that we fight for. Using people's Short-Term Motivations ''(Arc long) against them will give you a '+2''' on Doubt dealt. Using people's Long-Term Motivations ''(Campaign long) will give you a '+4'. Using people's loved ones or friends (Dependencies) against them will give you a '+1', unless they are also a ''Long-Term Motivation, where it will be a +5. Everyone has Motivations, and you are expected to pick one Long-Term motivation and two short-term. Dependencies can be taken for bonus CP, though be careful adding too many motivations, as they can be used as leverage against you! Powers & Talents Your Power is a single concept (Analyse, Transmutation, Fleshcrafting, Mind Control) while Talents are how you use your power. Some powers are more innately powerful than others, though not everyone can use their powers to their fullest capacity (especially if they are newly Awakened). Example: If I have the Power "Fire Generation", but I want to fly around using fire, that would be a Talent called "Flaming Flight" or something similar. Get creative. Power Grades The number associated with your power * -1: F(FAIL) "crippled" * 0: E(1d4) "human level" * 2: D(1d6) "peak human" * 4: C(1d8) "average" * 6: B(1d10) "good" * 8: A(1d12) "very good" * 10: S(2d6) "exemplar" * 11+: S+(3d6) "godly" You can increase your Grade by one step, making it x''+, though it does not affect the Die Rating. Every point past S costs double the normal TP (S>S+ 2, S>SS 4). The hard cap for Power Grades on most heroes is S+, though going through a ''Second Awakening can unlock higher-tier powers... Though doing so comes with extreme trauma. Power Level * Potency: how strong your Talents are (=Highest Die Rating) * Aptitude: negative side effects or other weaknesses (Ex. prolonged use causes nausea, bright lights cause blindness, circumstance reliant, etc.) * Mastery: how good you are at using powers. You cannot use Talents which Potency > Mastery at their current dR. Power Classes One's Power usually fall into multiple categories. Power Classes are just descriptions of your powers, they do not define your character or who they are, unless you want them to. # Shifters: "physical change" # Protectors: "shielding/healing abilities" # Shapers: "manipulating pre-existing energy" # Creators: "generating new energy" # Enhancers: "buffing oneself or allies" # Hexers: "debuffing others" # Fighters: "melee combat specialty" # Blasters: "ranged combat specialty" # Captivators: "influencing others" # Thinkers: "passive psychic abilities" # Meddlers: "bending physics" Super Attributes The only real "set in stone" powers are Super Attributes, such as Super Brawn or Super Smarts. Mechanically, they give you a +1 Modifier per dR to all rolls made with that Attribute. Unlike Skills, it also carries over to sub-attributes as well! Any Parahuman can have one or more Super Attributes that tie-in well with their other power, such as someone who can read super fast having Super Smarts as well. Hopefully, you will make more useful characters than The Bookworm, though. Bonuses: * Super Brawn: +''x'' Health. You are much tougher than average. * Super Agility: +''x'' Dodge. You are much faster at responding to danger than your average Parahuman. * Super Fitness: +''x'' Stamina. You can run much further and often faster than your average Parahuman. * Super Smarts: Can gain a Hint from the Game Master once per session. You are better at puzzle solving and strategising than your average Parahuman. * Super Perception: Roll twice while searching for clues. At the end of an Investigation, you are told how many clues you have missed. * Super Willpower: +x Composure. You are more resilient to mind-based attacks. * Super Leadership: +''x'' * 10 % chance of positive outcomes from a given speech. NPCs are more likely to have a positive first impression of you. * Super Influence: +''x Debate. NPCs are more likely to listen to you. Parahuman Classes Classes in ''World of Heroes are not like how they are in other systems, such as Dungeons & Dragons, where it restricts your development and forces you on a skill tree. Instead, it simply gives you a base to start from and you expand it all from there. * Basic Powers: "Overmen" ** >60% of all known Parahumans ** Have the most varied powers ** The only connecting factor is that 'basic' powers manifest from both the physical body and mind ** Masters of their power can use it fluidly without thinking, like martial arts masters ** While stressed, distracted or depressed, it may be difficult for some parahumans to use their powers to the fullest extent ** On average, Overmen tend to fall in mid-tier power levels ** Example Powers: Fire Manipulation, Enhanced Muscle Mass, Shapeshifting ** Bonus: None. * Psychic Powers: "Erudites" or "Psychics" ** ~20% of all known Parahumans ** Rare among Parahumans, but not as rare as Gemini or Aces ** Erudites have powers that come purely from the mind ** While stressed or distracted, use of their powers becomes nigh impossible ** On average, Erudites fall into high-tier power levels ** Example Powers: Telepathy, Telekinesis, Mind Control ** Bonus: +1 Potency, -1 Aptitude. * Extra Mutations: "Aberrations" or "Mutants" ** ~30% of all known ** Every Parahuman has some form of a minor mutation that separates them from the rest of Humanity, but Aberrations are characterised by having more than two visible mutations ** Mutations vary from strange eye/hair colour, weird scar-like tissue on arms, baldness, skin discolouration, random animal parts, etc. ** Mutant powers are almost entirely physical in nature and do not require much mental effort to use ** Mutants tend to either fall in very low or very high power levels (D or A) ** Bonus: Start with one Major Mutation that will affect how others see you. +1 Potency OR +1 Mastery. * Dual Powers: "Gemini" or "Hybrids" ** ~5% of all known Parahumans ** Usually formed when two Parahumans meet and have a child (though it's still very rare) ** Powers often compliment each other in some way ** Two powers ≠ stronger powers ** Have more unstable and hard to use powers ** Example Powers: Fire/Ice Generation, Fear/Hope Aura, Light/Darkness Manipulation ** Bonus: Start with two linked Powers at -1 Potency (E). -1 Mastery. Increasing your Mastery costs double the normal points (2/rank). * Power-affecting Powers: "Potentialkinetics" or "Aces" ** <1% of all powereds are "Aces" ** The strongest type of parahuman ** All Aces have AT LEAST A-tier powers ** Example Powers: Nullification, Mimic, Empowerment ** Bonus: +2 Potency, -3 Character Points. * Multilaterally Powered: "Splicers" ** The most recently-discovered class of Parahumans, officially named in 1997, following the studies done at the Zarathustra Parahuman Academy by Professor Jesus Ross and his associates. ** Splicers have an extra set of powers laying dormant somewhere within their DNA ** Following a "Second Awakening", these powers become active giving the Parahuman, what appears to be, two distinct power sets ** It is hypothesised that around 10% of all known Overmen could really be Splicers, based on the analyses done at the ZPA ** Bonus: Can gain Secondary Powers from a Second Awakening * Human Experiments: "Pawns" or "Patsies" ** A very unfortunate class of powered individuals who have been forced to undergo an Awakening by some external force ** It is believed that there are only a handful of these Parahumans in the entire world, considering the fact that finding dormant Parahumans and forcing them to awaken is a monumental task requiring time, education and a substantial fortune ** HE-Class Parahumans are much stronger than average Parahumans, though they tend to lack mental stability, considering their often incredibly violent Awakenings ** Due to the nature of their powers, they are often completely unique and go against the known rules that powers must normally adhere to ** In turn, however, it is believed impossible for an HE-Class Parahuman to undergo a Second Awakening ** Bonus: '''+3 CP, +3 TP. Maximum '''4 Willpower. Can never undergo a Second Awakening. Gain the attention of an Outsider ...There are probably many other undefined types of Parahumans out there, considering what little we know of Power Theory even in the 21st Century. I implore you to get creative with your characters, and to have fun above all else! Limitations Complications You can take one or two Complications for bonuses. Some may give you Character Points, Talent Points, Image, Wealth, Spirit Shards, or something else entirely... But they all have their downsides that go along with them. A lot of times, Complications are also Motivations, meaning they can be exploited in social combat, if they are found out. You may gain Complications and Motivations throughout the course of the story, for example, losing an arm or gaining a romantic interest. For the more severe ones, you will be rewarded with CP, but usually, you will gain a Spirit Shard or two. Dependents Picking a Dependent in Character Creation will give you a character to support, travel with or guide you... However they will also require your protection. Think about it as a free Contact that has a couple of requirements: * Requires your protection from most threats * Financially reliant on you (or vice versa) * Powerless or very weak These types of characters could be lovers, mentors, family or some other type of ally. They will not give up on you no matter what, and in return expect you to take care of them. Think Alfred from Batman or Lois Lane from Superman if you want media examples. Mechanically, you can gain CP, TP or WE from having a Dependent. Stigmas A public secret you tried to hide at one point, though for one reason or another, came to the limelight. Generally, these are not as harsh as True Secrets, though they still greatly influence your character and how they interact with the world (and especially how others view your character). Flaws Something about you that affects you negatively. These are purely internal, so If you are looking for backstory-related flaws, see either Secrets or Stigmas. Flaws can be Physical, Mental, Social, Personality based or some combination thereof. More often than not, Flaws are simple quirks of your personality that can get you into trouble sometimes +1. Others, are much more negative and affect you daily as you try to make your way through a world that clearly wasn't designed with your well-being in mind +2. Secrets What is the best way to add drama to your character? Give them something they are hiding. Maybe it's past mistake they regret: a shady deal, a lie, a theft, a murder, it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is not letting anyone know this secret of yours, no matter the cost, as it could potentially ruin your life if anyone found out. Most heroes have a sort of secret: their identity. Many heroes choose to keep it close to them, only ever telling Vanguard officials, while others live it up in the limelight and tell the whole world. Unless you're secretly somebody important, your Identity isn't really enough to consider a "deathly secret", though it is still something to always think about. Example Secrets: * "I'm not who I say I am. I am really..." * "In the past, I committed a grave sin..." * "I know something I shouldn't..." * "I am secretly related to..." * "I have a fondness for..." In-Universe Examples DEPENDENT: Papa Flame is Cheri's father. He is powered, but unable to really fight. He is beloved by the public and rich, though he certainly has his enemies. WE STIGMA: Cheri is in a same-sex relationship with Dakota, something frowned upon in most of the country. This would affect her in her day-to-day life in a negative way. CP FLAW: Candace Cross is very cocky and stubborn, often putting her and the ones she cares about in bad situations, however, always trusting her gut has also saved her life numerous times. CP FLAW: Nightmare requires a special concoction to be able to use his powers without severely hurting himself. TP FLAW: Hayden lost her right arm while fighting a villain and has to deal with the sense of loss associated with it. CP SECRET: Charles Ikazuchi lives a double-life, being the head of a megacorporation and a member of The LA Rangers. If the world ever knew his secret, it would not only affect him but his livelihood and family. +WE Conclusion All of these examples are exploitable by Villains and should be guarded carefully, though they are not negative things about your characters you should erase, they help flesh them out and make them who they are. They also help me make the game more personal for you, by raising the stakes. What fun is it saving the world if you personally have nothing to lose? What is a bigger motivator than someone you love?Category:Game Mechanics